Many engineering tasks covered by UK legislation specify Chartership as a requirement of the persons undertaking them.
[4] In the 19th century Engineering as a profession was becoming prolific and various disciplines (principally Civil, Mechanical and Electrical) organised to form Institutions to further the interests of their members and the industry as a whole.
At this time, each institution began to implement entry examinations for membership to ensure a minimum standard of competence of their members.
[5] Membership of an engineering institution quickly became a mark of quality and would give employers confidence in the competency of its members.
[7] By the mid-1950s, a significant demand for a central body to set the standards for education and training and to represent the wider profession had arisen.
[8] This body was empowered to imbue the title of Chartered Engineer to elected members of PEIs.
The UK-SPEC denotes the following academic qualification requirements (for the 'traditional' pathway): Initial Professional Development (IPD) is acquired through work place learning.
The Engineering Council sets out basic requirements and similar to IPD, CPD may be further enhanced by individual PEIs.
This is written after honours, decorations and academic/university, but before letters denoting membership of professional engineering institutions.
The Washington Accord, signed by the Engineering Council in 1989, recognises "substantial equivalence" between the academic requirements for registration between signatories, meaning that foreign qualifications recognised by their local signatory body are accepted for Chartered Engineers, and UK qualifications can be used in applying for similar international statuses.